National Advertising Council

The final major association of the American business aristocracy is very different from the other four. It is the National Advertising Council. The NAG was formed during World War II as the War Advertising Gouncil and was designed to promote such government programs as ration¬ing and war bonds. After the war it continued as a public service paid for by the large corporations. “It’s a voluntary gift to America by U. S. business,� explained a two-page advertisement in a 1965 issue of Time Magazine.’8 The council’s best-known figure is Smokey the Bear, but it also supports the Red Gross, the Peace Corps, the United Nations, Traffic Safety, Youth Fitness, and Radio Free Europe. As of 1958, eight of the 19 members of its Public Policy Gommittee were members of the GFR. Four of the eight who are in the GFR, along with four others, are corporate executives or members of the upper class. The others are college presidents (three), labor leaders (two), and a variety of professional persons. Among the upper-class members of this council are John J. McCloy, a leading figure in the CFR, Benjamin Buttenweiser, a leading figure in the FPA, and Paul G. Hoffman, a leading figure in the CED. However, the most obvious basis of control in this case is corporate financing.